WWE NXT Wrestling Recap: Eric Young Makes NXT Debut

Welcome to our new weekly look at WWE NXT from the WWE Network. This new recap will start off with the new era in NXT, with many stars moving up to the main roster last month and this being the first episode with Samoa Joe as the new WWE NXT Champion. Here is a look at this week’s NXT Wrestling, where Eric Young made his NXT debut.

Samoa Joe Opens the Show

Samoa Joe opens the show by coming out as the new NXT Champion, which he surprisingly won at a house show in Massachusetts (in an ironic location since that is also where Samoa Joe won his first TNA World title at). Samoa Joe basically lays down an open challenge to anyone to try to come out and challenge him for the title. That brought out former TNA World Champion Eric Young in his NXT debut.

Eric Young said that he collects titles. He said that the only thing that stays the same is change. Things changed for Samoa Joe and now things will change for Eric Young. Samoa Joe walked out and then said that EY does not belong in the same ring with him and next time he comes into his ring, he will beat his ass. The fans were hugely chanting for Eric Young.

Nia Jax beat Tessa Blanchard (* 1/2)

For those who don’t know, Tessa Blanchard is the daughter of WWE Hall of Famer and Four Horsemen member Tully Blanchard. She had little chance against Nia Jax, who is a monster compared to Tessa. It was a squash with Nia Jax destroying Tessa after a leg drop. Nia Jax looks like she is on a crash course for an NXT title match.

Austin Aries beat Tye Dillinger (** 1/2)

Tye Dillinger is the “Perfect 10” and the fans chant “10” for him throughout the match. His opponent in this match is former TNA World Champion Austin Aries (making that three former TNA World Champions to appear on NXT television already tonight. The fans were behind Dillinger big time but Aries worked his ass off and the fans didn’t mind when he picked up the win with the 450 splash. Dillinger got a lot of offense and looked good in the loss.

The Revival beat Hype Bros (* 1/2)

The Revival is an old-school tag team in the best sense of the word (think the Anderson family) while the Hype Bros is Zack Ryder (who the fans love) and Mojo Rawley (who the fans have never really liked). Lots of chants for Zack Ryder but The Revival dominated most of the match. It is hard to believe that Zack Ryder is one month removed from his big WrestleMania 32 win. The Revival won when they pinned Mojo Rawley after the Shatter Machine. Honestly, the right team won but it was a squash.

Alex Riley Interviewed Backstage

Alex Riley is making his comeback and next week he fights Shinsuke Nakamura and he is arrogant, talking down about how he is bigger and stronger and saying Nakamura has no athletic coordination. It was a very inflated promo with Riley completely oblivious to the truth, but he needs to work a little on his promos.

No Way Jose beat Noah Kekoa (*)

So, this is No Way Jose’s second match since making his debut. He is like the new mix of Fandango and Adam Rose, a partying and fun type that dances while he wrestles. He also gets mad when he gets hit like Rose did when he first started in NXT. However, he is just average in the ring and this match was not really exciting. No Way Jose winning doesn’t mean much unless he starts to look better in the ring. He won with the Full Nelson Slam.

Austin Aries Interviewed Backstage

Cathy congratulated Aries on his win over Tye Dillinger. Aries congratulated her for looking so good. He then said that he was flying under the radar after getting such raves when he signed with NXT. He then said that he will find his way back to the top.

Samoa Joe beat Eric Young (** 1/2)

I am shocked that Eric Young and Samoa Joe are fighting on the very night that EY made his NXT debut. They could have held this off and made it a much bigger impact, but it is what it is. Even more interesting is that Joe almost dominated the entire match. It was a hard fought match and showed that Young was resilient. Finally, at the end EY started to make his comeback. He hit the big flying elbow drop but only got a two. He then went for the piledriver (which I am pretty sure is banned in the WWE) but Joe blocked it, hit the Muscle Buster and the Coquina Clutch for the win. Joe wouldn’t release it until EY was pretty much unconscious to show his dominance.

Shawn is a film critic with 30 years of experience in print and online media. He is a former member of the Oklahoma Film Critics Circle and loves everything from critically acclaimed movies to B-level action flicks and everything in between.